Project: reversible tote bag

Two years ago, a friend and I promised one another handmade gifts via a wall-post in Facebook. We had until the end of that year to fulfill the promise. She sent me lovely handmade greeting cards. I sent her an IOU. So bad!!!

Well, here I am two years later with some time between jobs, so I decide to make a reversible tote bag using fabric of the "remnants" section at Jo-Ann Fabric & Crafts. I took what my mother had taught me on the sewing machine a long time ago, and made the bag in this tutorial. Read the full tutorial before beginning because the writer admits to posting the wrong photo for one set of directions. Another error may be that the darts should be sewn right sides together (not wrong sides together), but I could be wrong.

Anyways, here's the product below. It took about 4 hours to make and cut the pattern, cut the fabric, and then pin/sew the bag together. I used craft paper for the pattern. The pattern for the tote is 18x18 inches and the pocket was supposed to be 8x8 inches. I think I measured (and cut) wrong because the pocket looks huge! In retrospect, the pocket should be a solid color so as to not compete with the pattern behind it. Nevertheless, not bad for a first try! I hope my friend can use this bag! I'd certainly try to make another one -- maybe bigger.

P.S. I have so much more appreciation for the designers on Project Runway with the time constraints imposed on while expecting a high level of craftsmanship and creativity.